PDF Minority Cancer Awareness Week Social Media Toolkit

Minority Cancer Awareness Week Social Media Toolkit

April 8-14, 2018

Minority Cancer Awareness Week Social Media Toolkit April 8-14, 2018

CONTENTS

ABOUT THIS TOOLKIT.................................................................................................................................. 2 WHO SHOULD USE THIS TOOLKIT?............................................................................................................. 2 WHAT IS MINORITY CANCER AWARENESS WEEK?...................................................................................... 2 SOCIAL MEDIA 101 ...................................................................................................................................... 3 TWITTER BEST PRACTICES........................................................................................................................... 3 FACEBOOK BEST PRACTICES ...................................................................................................................... 4 BEST PRACTICES FOR COMMUNICATION AND CANCER DISPARITIES....................................................... 4 WHEN DEVELOPING MESSAGES................................................................................................................. 4 SAMPLE TWEETS AND FACEBOOK POSTS.................................................................................................. 6 OTHER IDEAS TO PROMOTE MINORITY CANCER AWARENESS.................................................................. 7

Host or Participate in a Twitter Chat or Twitterview.................................................................................... 8 Live Tweet an Event or Conference ........................................................................................................... 8 Host a Facebook Live Event....................................................................................................................... 9 Share Event Photos on Instagram ............................................................................................................. 9 Share Your Event on Snapchat................................................................................................................... 9 Promote Your Cause on Pinterest ........................................................................................................... 10 Publish a Blog Post ................................................................................................................................. 10 Host a Reddit Ask Me Anything .............................................................................................................. 10 MEASURING SUCCESS............................................................................................................................... 10 ADDITIONAL TOOLS AND RESOURCES..................................................................................................... 11 GLOSSARY.................................................................................................................................................. 13

Tip: Viewing this PDF in Google Chrome? Use "Ctrl+Click" on links to open them in a new tab.

This work was supported by Cooperative Agreement #1U38DP004972-05 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

@GWCancer #CompCancer #NMHM #HealthEquity #ActNow

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ABOUT THIS TOOLKIT

This toolkit is designed to help public health professionals establish a Minority Cancer Awareness Week social media strategy, manage social media accounts, implement Facebook and Twitter best practices, disseminate Minority Cancer Awareness Week messaging and evaluate their social media efforts.

Don't have the time or capacity to implement this toolkit? Don't fret! You can still engage your

audience by retweeting messages from @GWCancer

WHO SHOULD USE THIS TOOLKIT?

Public health professionals, cancer control professionals, coalitions and community-based organizations can all use this toolkit and adapt its messaging for their unique audiences and areas of expertise.

WHAT IS MINORITY CANCER AWARENESS WEEK?

April is National Minority Health Month, an annual campaign to raise awareness about the health disparities that continue to affect racial and ethnic minorities (Office of Minority Health, 2015). The campaign was originally started as "National Negro Health Week" in April 1915 by Booker T. Washington, and has since grown into a month-long opportunity to advance health equity across the United States

National Minority Cancer Awareness week, also in April, provides an opportunity to raise awareness about cancer disparities among racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. African American men have the highest incidence and death rates from cancer (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2016). In addition, research suggests that despite improvements in life expectancy and overall health, many Americans are not benefiting equally from these advances (CDC, 2016). African Americans and Hispanic individuals in the United States are also more likely to be uninsured, making it more difficult for them to access the care they need (Martinez, Ward & Adams, 2015). A study found that groups of color are also more likely to report experiencing bias and lack of cultural sensitivity when seeking treatment in the health care system compared to non-Hispanic whites--differences that persist when controlling for demographic factors, health literacy and self-rated health status (Betancourt, 2006; Kagawa-Singer et al., 2010).

Cancer disparities also exist among people with disabilities and people with mental and substance abuse disorders. In 2010, 29% of adults with disabilities reported unmet health care needs compared to 12% of adults without disabilities (CDC, 2011). Individuals with a mental illness may develop cancer at a 2.6 times higher rate due to late stage diagnosis and inadequate treatment and screenings (National Council for Behavioral Health, n.d.).

"Without health and until we reduce the high death rate it will be impossible for us to have permanent success in business, in property getting, in acquiring education or to show other evidences of progress. Without health and long life all else fails."

-BOOKER T. WASHINGTON THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER FEBRUARY 6, 1915

@GWCancer #CompCancer #NMHM #HealthEquity #ActNow

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SOCIAL MEDIA 101

According to a 2016 Pew Research Center survey, "69% of online adults use social networking sites." (Pew Research Center, 2017). In addition, a 2014 study found that nearly 75% of adults use social media to discuss health (Fox, 2014). African American users are more likely to report using Twitter than white users, and African American/Hispanic users are slightly more likely to report using Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Youtube than white users (Pew Research Center, 2017).

Looking for more in-depth info on social media channels and

communication strategy? Check out our Media Planning and Media Relations Guide, our Guide to Making Communication Campaigns Evidence - Based or our other social media toolkits.

Social media represents a unique opportunity to reach a large audience of both consumers and professionals. It is more important than ever that online medical and health information is "trustworthy, engaging, and accessible to digitally empowered consumers" (Hootsuite, n.d., p. 2).

When designing and thinking about your social media strategy, consider your audience, the channel(s) you want to use, your objective(s), or what you are trying to achieve, as well as how you will measure success. Remember that your social media activities should ultimately support your organization's goals (Hootsuite, n.d.).

Looking to establish a social media strategy for your organization or make the case for why it's important? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers social media tools to create and establish a social media strategy. The site also offers guidelines and best practices as well as evaluation strategies, tools and templates.

Remember to tailor messaging to your target audience or audiences. Your organization offers unique strengths and expertise; make sure to capitalize on them to make your campaign most effective.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS

Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest and more: Social media are growing every day, along with opportunities for outreach.

TWITTER BEST PRACTICES

? Keep Tweets short, below the 280 character limit. This allows other users to Retweet while adding their own comments. Note that @names no longer count toward the 280 character limit on Twitter.

? Add photos or videos. Adding a photo boosts Retweets by 62% on average (Twitter Government and Elections Team, 2014).

? Tweet at author or organizational Twitter handles when possible. Note that Tweets that begin with a username will now reach all your followers, but they will be categorized as "replies." If you want the Tweet to be seen on your timeline, use the ".@" convention at the beginning.

? Twitter, Tweetdeck, Sprout Social and Hootsuite all have options to shorten links as you write Tweets. Other options for shortening links are provided under Additional Tools and Resources.

? Promote engagement with other organizations by favoriting or Retweeting their content. You can even add your own comment before Retweeting.

? Be responsive and recognize Retweets, @ mentions and when others share your content. It doesn't take much, but a simple "thank you" goes a long way toward building engagement.

? Remember that Tweets cannot be edited once they are posted, so proofread before you post!

@GWCancer #CompCancer #NMHM #HealthEquity #ActNow

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FACEBOOK BEST PRACTICES

? Shorter posts (around 250 characters) get up to 60% more distribution than longer posts (CDC, n.d.)

? Use photos or videos to make your posts stand out. Posts with photos receive up to 50% more likes than non-photo posts (Hershkowitz & Lavrusik, 2013). However, be aware of Facebook's policies about what can be posted and identifying people in photos without consent (CDC, n.d.).

"...disparities in health may occur concomitantly with

disparities in access to information and knowledge,

that is, communication inequality" (Viswanath & Emmons, 2006, p. S242)

? Use a conversational tone and explain to your audience why the

content should matter to them (Hershkowitz & Lavrusik, 2013). ? Posts that start conversations by asking questions and

responding receive approximately 70% above-average engagement (Hershkowitz & Lavrusik, 2013).

? Vary your post type. Users don't engage the same way with every post (Hershkowitz & Lavrusik, 2013).

? Track your results and act on them. Facebook offers analytic data that you can use to find out what posts are being "liked" or shared and which ones aren't. Focus your efforts on what is working (CDC, n.d.).

? More information about Facebook best practices is available from CDC

BEST PRACTICES FOR COMMUNICATION AND CANCER DISPARITIES

While communication is not a cure-all for reducing cancer-related health disparities, it can serve as one important tool in an overall strategy to address health inequities. Social epidemiology is one field of study that seeks to understand how institutions, and relationships, and social structures such as social class, income, and race influence health (Berkman, Kawachi & Glymour 2014). While research on message effects has largely focused on individual reactions to health messages, it's important to remember that audiences also process information through the shared filter of their social group or community (Viswanath & Emmons, 2006). There are several evidence-based practices you can use when developing messages intended to reduce cancer-related health disparities:

? Understand that cultural background significantly impacts the lens through which we view health information

? Assess the health literacy level of your messages for appropriateness and use culturally appropriate narratives as an effective communication tool

? Use communication messages to point people toward on-the-ground resources for care and don't underestimate the importance of community-based partnerships in reducing disparities

WHEN DEVELOPING MESSAGES...

Cultural Background

? Integrate cultural knowledge into the style of your communication messages--this requires a careful understanding of your audience and their preferred communication style (Kagawa-Singer, Valdez Dadia, Yu & Surbone, 2010).

? Incorporate cultural norms, values, and religious beliefs into health messages as this may be more effective than those that incorporate only surface-level cultural features such as risk statistics (Huang & Shen, 2016).

@GWCancer #CompCancer #NMHM #HealthEquity #ActNow

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